Chapter 36: Sleep
Nox really needed to rest now. His body ached, and that whole mana awakening thing had taken a lot out of him. Besides, he was pretty much broke. The money he’d saved up over the years was almost gone after paying for their food and the new clothes. He figured they needed a proper place to crash, at least for a few hours.
He led Serian through the streets of District 7. It was getting darker, and fewer people were out. He scanned the buildings, looking for a hotel that didn’t look like it would cost a fortune. ’Can’t be too picky, but man, I hope I have enough,’ he thought.
He spotted a small place with a flickering ’Hotel’ sign. It looked old, maybe a bit run down, but clean enough from the outside. "This might work," he said, more to himself than to Serian.
They went inside. The lobby was small, and an old guy sat behind the counter, looking bored.
"Need a room," Nox said.
The guy looked them up and down. "Just one night?"
"Yeah."
"That’ll be fifty," the guy said, not even cracking a smile.
Nox blinked. ’Fifty? For this place? Damn.’ He knew prices were probably nuts now with everything going on. He pulled out the last of his cash. It was just enough. He handed it over, his wallet now officially empty. ’Well, there goes everything. Hope this princess is worth it.’